Graphene nanoribbons formed from n-alkane by thermal dehydrogenation on Au(111) surface

Abstract A graphene nanoribbon is formed by the dehydrogenation reaction of n -alkane adsorbed on a Au(111) surface. The X-ray absorption spectra at the near carbon K-edge show the appearance of the out-of-plane 1s → π ⁎ resonance upon heating the n -C 44 H 90 monolayer with the simultaneous disappearance of the 1s → σ ⁎ CH /R (R: Rydberg state) resonance. The π ⁎ resonance located at 284.6 eV reflects a high edge density and is consistent with the ribbon shape, which was observed by scanning tunneling microscopy, and the C 1s XPS peak at 284.0 eV.